The present invention relates generally to an overhead automotive airbag assembly and more particularly to an overhead airbag assembly with limited forward movement.
Automotive vehicle design is governed by the constant and unending pursuit of improved occupant comfort and safety. Modern vehicles incorporate considerable design and manufacturing efforts to minimize injuries to occupants in the event of vehicle accidents. These safety features, however, must co-exist with the primary functional features as well as the comfort features of the vehicle. Their placement within the vehicle, therefore, must be a function of both operation of the safety component in combination with available placement within the existing vehicle operational structure.
These physical placement constraints can serve to limit the freedom of placement of certain features within the automobile. Such is the case with airbag assemblies. Airbag assemblies have proven themselves to be highly beneficial and desirable to consumers. A wide variety of implementation schemes have been devised in order to improve the functionality of airbag protection assemblies. The assemblies, however, are often positioned within traditional mounting structures based upon their operational objectives. Frontal impact airbags, for instance, are commonly positioned immediately forward of the occupant and are designed to inflate towards the occupant upon vehicle impact. This requires installation immediately forward of the occupant in the steering wheel or dashboard. Placement of frontal impact airbags for rear-seated passengers is often impractical or overly complex.
The resulting design scenario commonly finds these airbag assemblies positioned in these traditional mounting locations. These locations, especially the dashboard, can become prized real estate in automotive design. As additional technology and features are incorporated into automobiles, locations such as the dashboard are desirable for passenger accessible features. Present airbag assemblies can place considerable constraint on the incorporation of these new features. It would therefore, be highly desirable to afford an alternate mounting location for forward impact airbag assemblies that provided design flexibility to automotive designers such that that airbag assemblies did not place unreasonable constraints on design creativity.
On approach to the placement of frontal impact airbag assemblies is to position the assemblies in an overhead position. This arrangement not only addresses the concern for useful real estate on the dashboard, but also can provide access to passengers seated in the rear without complex seat/airbag designs. The nature of present airbag assemblies, however, does not provide adequate restraint in directions perpendicular to inflation. An overhead airbag assembly, therefore, would provide insufficient resistance to forward motion since the passenger is moving in a direction perpendicular to inflation. The lack of forward motion resistance is further exacerbated by the relatively small airbag mounting arrangements. The mounting structures are commonly small compared to the inflated bags and therefore provide inadequate support for the resistance of perpendicular forces. It would, therefore, be highly desirable to have an overhead airbag assembly design with improved forward motion resistance.